Incremental data storage method, apparatus, interface, and system

ABSTRACT

An interface for managing incremental data storage includes a write function that appends an entry to an incremental log, a read function that retrieves a most recent log entry corresponding to a block address, and a snapshot function that automatically partitions the incremental log into an additional volume. The interface may also include a policy assignment function that associates specified policies with explicitly or implicitly specified resources, a read entry function that retrieves sequential entries from the incremental log, and a compact volume function. The provided functions and associated apparatus, method, and system, facilitate management of incremental data including snapshot, remote copy, data compaction, policy management, data restoration, and other operations on data storage devices and systems.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. The Field of the Invention

The invention relates to interfaces, methods, apparatus, and systems forstoring data. Specifically, the invention relates to interfaces,methods, apparatus, and systems for managing incremental data storage.

2. The Relevant Art

Data storage devices and systems are subject to equipment failures,software bugs, operational errors, and disasters that prevent immediateor long term access to valuable data. Additionally, data storage systemsoften support environments and applications that require storagereliability and availability that is greater than what is inherentlyprovided by individual storage devices. As a result, many techniques andstrategies have been applied to data storage devices and systems inorder to increase the reliability and availability of data access. Someof those techniques include storage redundancy, data archiving, andremote copy techniques.

Storage redundancy techniques improve reliability by storing redundantimages on multiple devices. Data mirroring, in which data is written totwo or more devices in parallel, is perhaps the simplest redundancytechnique. Although expensive in terms of storage usage, data mirroringfacilitates increased performance in that read operations may bedistributed to each parallel device to increase storage throughput.However, storage redundancy techniques, although useful, do not addressthe need for access to previous copies of data files or images within adata storage system.

Data archiving techniques were developed in response to the need toaccess previous copies of data files or images within data storagesystems. With data archiving techniques, data files or images are copiedto backup devices and maintained for subsequent use. Backup devicestypically comprise slower media that must be carefully managed tosuccessfully restore a file or image to a previous state. To reduce thebandwidth associated with archiving data, incremental techniques areoften applied in which only the changes to a file or image are stored onthe archive media. Incremental techniques while useful, may increase thecomplexity of restoring data files or images within data storagesystems.

Remote copy techniques are a particular form of data archiving in whichdata is copied to a remote site either via physical media ortransmission links. The availability of a remote copy facilitatesrecovery operations in the event of a local disaster such as a fire orflood. However, providing complete and constant data availabilityrequires transmission of each write operation to the remote siteresulting in high bandwidth requirements for the transmission link.

The aforementioned techniques and strategies are often implemented ashost-based solutions requiring considerable planning, administration,and coordination for reliable deployment. Typically, multiple techniquesand strategies must be deployed and managed to fit the needs of aparticular installation. Such solutions are typically expensive toimplement, reduce system performance, and may not provide adequate dataavailability and reliability.

Consequently, a need for an integrated approach to increasing dataavailability and reliability that is inexpensive to deploy, easy tomanage, and transparent to system performance. In particular, what isneeded are interfaces, methods, apparatus, and systems for providing andmanaging incremental data storage in a manner that supports policymanagement, data redundancy, and compacted remote copy operations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The various elements of the present invention have been developed inresponse to the present state of the art, and in particular, in responseto the problems and needs in the art that have not yet been fully solvedby currently available data storage means and methods. Accordingly, thepresent invention provides an improved interface, method, apparatus, andsystem for storing and managing incremental copies of volume images.

In one aspect of the present invention, an interface for managingincremental data storage is provided and includes a write functionconfigured to append an entry to an incremental log, a read functionconfigured to retrieve a most recent log entry corresponding to a blockaddress, and a snapshot function configured to automatically partitionthe incremental log into a first and second volume.

The interface may also include a delete volume function configured torelease a snapshot volume, a policy assignment function configured toassign a policy to an incremental log, a read entry function configuredto retrieve a sequential entry from the incremental log, and a compactvolume function configured to compact a snapshot volume. The interfacefor managing incremental data storage provides a rich set of functionsthat facilitate automated snapshot management, compacted ornon-compacted remote copy operations, policies for storage management,and advanced data recovery. Snapshot images may be automaticallyassociated with a volume identifier such as a logical unit number (LUN)in order to reduce the complexity of managing snapshot data.

In another aspect of the present invention, a method for managingincremental data storage includes appending data to an incremental log,automatically partitioning the incremental log in response to a snapshotoperation, and assigning a volume identifier to a newly formed partitionas directed by a storage management policy.

The aforementioned method may also include copying selected log entriesto a tertiary volume, retrieving a most recent log entry correspondingto a block address, retrieving a most recent log entry corresponding toa specified snapshot volume and block address, and automaticallycompacting a snapshot partition. In one embodiment, each log entrycontains a pointer to a subsequent entry and in-place compaction of asnapshot partition is performed by placing redundant log entries (i.e.overwritten entries) within a free list. In-place compactionsubstantially eliminates the copy operations normally associated withcompaction.

The method for managing incremental data storage provides an integratedapproach to managing incremental storage that supports a wide variety ofpolicies such as automated volume creation and automated compaction ofincremental partitions into a baseline image in response to snapshotoperations. The provided functionality greatly reduces the complexity ofmanaging incremental storage and facilitates increased data storagereliability and availability.

In another aspect of the present invention, an apparatus for incrementaldata storage includes a baseline volume containing a baseline image, anincremental log partitioned into one or more snapshot volumes, and apartition module configured to automatically partition the incrementallog into an additional snapshot volume in response to a snapshotoperation. In one embodiment, the partition module is also configured toassign a volume identifier to a newly formed partition as directed by astorage management policy.

In addition to the aforementioned elements, the apparatus forincremental data storage may also include a copy module configured tocopy selected entries from the incremental log to a tertiary volume, aread module configured to retrieve a most recent log entry correspondingto a specified snapshot and block address, and a compaction moduleconfigured to automatically compact a snapshot partition to the baselinevolume. In one embodiment, the compaction module is configured toconduct in-place compaction. The apparatus for incremental data storageprovides incremental data storage and supports transparent storagemanagement within a data processing system.

The various aspects and elements of the present invention are combinedinto a system for redundant incremental data storage. In one embodiment,the system for redundant incremental data storage includes a primarystorage device configured to store data, a secondary storage deviceconfigured to store data within a baseline volume and an incrementallog, the incremental log comprising at least one snapshot volume; acontroller configured to store and access data on the primary andsecondary storage device, and a snapshot management module configured toautomatically partition the incremental log into an additional snapshotvolume in response to a snapshot operation. In one embodiment, theprimary storage device comprises a plurality of redundantly arrangeddevices and the secondary storage device provides an additional level ofdata redundancy. The system for redundant incremental data storage mayalso include a host configured to access data via the controller.

The various elements and aspects of the present invention provide highlyavailable and reliable data storage to a data processing system or thelike. These and other features and advantages of the present inventionwill become more fully apparent from the following description andappended claims, or may be learned by the practice of the invention asset forth hereinafter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order that the manner in which the advantages of the invention areobtained will be readily understood, a more particular description ofthe invention briefly described above will be rendered by reference tospecific embodiments thereof, which are illustrated in the appendeddrawings. Understanding that these drawings depict only typicalembodiments of the invention and are not therefore to be considered tobe limiting of its scope, the invention will be described and explainedwith additional specificity and detail through the use of theaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a prior artdata storage system;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a redundantincremental storage system of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of an incrementalstorage appliance of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flow chart diagram illustrating one embodiment of anincremental storage management method of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a text-based diagram depicting one embodiment of anincremental storage management interface of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a flow chart diagram illustrating one embodiment of anin-place compaction method of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Many of the functional units described in this specification have beenlabeled as modules, in order to more particularly emphasize theirimplementation independence. For example, modules may be implemented insoftware for execution by various types of processors. An identifiedmodule of executable code may, for instance, comprise one or morephysical or logical blocks of computer instructions which may, forinstance, be organized as an object, procedure, or function.Nevertheless, the executables of an identified module need not bephysically located together, but may comprise disparate instructionsstored in different locations which, when joined logically together,comprise the module and achieve the stated purpose for the module. Forexample, a module of executable code could be a single instruction, ormany instructions, and may even be distributed over several differentcode segments, among different programs, and across several memorydevices.

Modules may also be implemented in hardware as electronic circuitscomprising custom VLSI circuitry, off-the-shelf semiconductors such aslogic chips, transistors, or other discrete components. A module mayalso be implemented in programmable hardware devices such as fieldprogrammable gate arrays, programmable array logic, programmable logicdevices or the like.

Similarly, operational data may be identified and illustrated hereinwithin modules, and may be embodied in any suitable form and organizedwithin any suitable type of data structure. The operational data may becollected as a single data set, or may be distributed over differentlocations including over different storage devices, and may exist, atleast partially, merely as electronic signals on a system or network.

Referring to FIG. 1, a representative prior art storage system 100includes a host 110, one or more storage controllers 120 with redundantstorage devices 130, one or more backup devices 140, and one or moredata vaults 150. The various devices and modules depicted in FIG. 1portray the complexity in providing data storage that is reliable andcontinuously available in light of equipment failures, operator errors,site disasters, and the like.

The depicted storage controller 120 includes a data redundancy module122. The data redundancy module 122 generates and stores redundantimages on the redundant storage devices 130. In certain configurations,the redundancy may be a completely redundant (i.e., mirrored) imagestorage stored on more than one device. In such a configuration, dataaccess performance may be increased by alternating read operationsbetween the redundant storage devices 130.

The depicted host 110 includes a snapshot management module 112 and aremote storage management module 114. The snapshot management module 112captures volume images from the redundant storage devices 130 andstreams those images to the backup device 140. The snapshot managementmodule 112 may copy only those portions of an image which have changedsince a previous backup.

In certain embodiments, portions of the snapshot management module maybe contained within the storage controller 120 in order to increasesystem performance. Nevertheless, snapshot management and dataredundancy are typically separate functions within a prior art storagesystem in contrast to the integrated nature of the present invention.

The depicted remote storage management module 114 transmits data on adata link 116 to the data vault 150. Typically, in order to maintaincoherency between the image on the local storage volumes and thereplicated volumes on the data vault 150, each write operation must betransmitted to the data vault 150 by the remote storage managementmodule 114. However, due to the high bandwidth associated with writeoperations, large data buffers and high bandwidth transmission links arerequired in order to keep up with local write operations.

In certain embodiments, physical media may be transported to the datavault 150 in lieu of transmission on the data link 116. However, writingdata to archival media increases the window of vulnerability in theevent of failures and requires tedious synchronization and coordinationactivities when conducting recovery operations.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of a redundantincremental storage system 200 of the present invention. As depicted,the redundant incremental storage system includes a host 210, a storagecontroller 220, a set of redundant storage devices 230, and the datavault 150. The redundant incremental storage system 200 provides anintegrated approach to reliable high-availability data storage resultingin an inexpensive, easy to manage solution that is transparent to systemperformance.

As depicted, the storage controller 220 includes a storage managementmodule 222, a data redundancy module 224, and a remote archiving module226. Although the modules 222, 224, and 226 are depicted within a singlestorage controller 220, one of skill in the art will appreciate that thefunctionality provided by the modules 222, 224, and 226 may bedistributed across a plurality of storage controllers and devices.

The storage management module 222 provides an integrated interface andrelated functionality for various storage management operations such assnapshot operations, compaction operations, archive operations, volumepartitioning operations, and the like. The interface may conform to astorage management method and API described in conjunction with FIGS. 4and 5.

In certain embodiments, the storage management module 222 supports theaforementioned operations via policies 223 such as temporal-basedpolicies, status-based policies, and event-based policies. Throughpolicies, snapshot operations, compaction operations, archiveoperations, and the like may be conducted at specific times, at specificintervals, in response to certain events, or conditions such as spaceavailability on a volume.

The remote archiving module 226 may transmit compacted or non-compacted,incremental or non-incremental images of volumes on a data link 228 tothe data vault 150. In certain embodiments, in place of the data vault150, a completely redundant site (not shown) may be connected to thestorage system 200 via the data link 228.

The redundant storage devices 230 include one or more incrementalstorage devices 230 b and may include one or more non-incrementalstorage devices 230 a. The incremental storage devices 230 b comprisebaseline volumes 232 and incremental volumes 234. In certainembodiments, the incremental volumes 234 correspond to partitions withinan incremental log (not shown) and each partition contains entries foreach write operation that occurred over a particular snapshot interval.

In one embodiment, the incremental log is automatically partitioned inresponse to a snapshot operation, thereby reducing the complexity ofmanaging and accessing point-in-time copies of a particular volume. Incertain embodiments, the baseline volumes 232 and the incrementalvolumes 234 function as secondary volumes to the volumes on thenon-incremental storage devices and essentially form a RAID-1 redundancyconfiguration.

The non-incremental storage devices 230 a and the incremental storagedevices 230 b may be arranged in various redundant configurations eitherseparately or in combination. For example, the non-incremental storagedevices 230 a may be arranged in a RAID-5 configuration, while theincremental storage devices 230 b may be arranged with little or noredundancy. In such an arrangement, the combination of thenon-incremental storage devices 230 a and the incremental storagedevices 230 b provide an additional level of redundancy beyond theseparate RAID configurations of the non-incremental storage devices 230a and the incremental storage devices 230 b.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating one embodiment of an incrementalstorage appliance 300 of the present invention. The depicted incrementalstorage appliance 300 illustrates one embodiment of certain elements ofthe redundant incremental storage system 200 in greater detail. In oneembodiment, the depicted elements are integrated into a standalonestorage subsystem. In another embodiment, the depicted elementscorrespond to volumes or partitions within the incremental storagedevices 230 b and modules residing on the storage controller 220, thehost 210, or the like.

The incremental storage appliance 300 provides incremental storage in amanner that supports policy management, data redundancy, and compactedremote copy operations. The ability to support policy management, dataredundancy, and compacted remote copy operations increases the utilityand convenience of the storage appliance 300 over conventional storagemeans.

As depicted, the storage appliance 300 includes the storage managementmodule 222, a read/write module 310, a compaction module 320, an archivemodule 330, a partition module 340, and a storage medium 350. Thestorage medium 350 may include a plurality of partitions 352 associatedwith volumes including baseline volumes 360 and incremental volumes 380including current volumes 390. In the depicted embodiment, thepartitions associated with the incremental volumes 380 are partitionedsequentially within the incremental log 370 as a result, for example, ofa snapshot operation.

The volumes associated with the storage medium 350 may include abaseline volume 360 associated with a baseline partition 362, andseveral incremental volumes 380 including a current volume 390associated with a set of incremental partitions 382. As depicted, thepartitions associated with the baseline volumes 360 and the incrementalvolumes 380 include, respectively, one or more baseline entries 365, andone or more incremental entries 385. The depicted baseline entries 365and the incremental entries 385 correspond to data blocks provided bythe read/write module 310 in conjunction with write operations and maycontain a block address to facilitate recovery operations and the like.

The read/write module 310 supports read and write operations conductedon the storage medium 350. As depicted, write operations directed to thestorage medium 350 are appended to the incremental log 370 and placedwithin a partition corresponding to the current volume 390 in sequential(i.e. time) order. An index table (not shown) or other appropriatemechanism, may be maintained within the read/write module 310 orelsewhere, indicating the placement of the most recent entrycorresponding to a block address within a specified volume. The indexmay be updated with each write operation in order to reflect updates toa particular block.

In one embodiment, a block address and a volume identifier, such as alogical unit number (LUN), are provided when conducting read operationsin order to indicate the block that is to be read within the specifiedvolume. The volume identifier may specify a baseline volume or anincremental volume such as the current volume. In one embodiment, theaforementioned index, or the like, is used to retrieve the most recententry on the storage medium 350 that corresponds to the specified volumeand block. Given the incremental structure of the storage medium 350,the most recent entry may reside in a previous partition such as thebaseline partition 362 rather than the partition associated with thespecified volume.

The compaction module 320 provides compaction services within thestorage appliance 300. Compaction may be conducted in conjunction withmerging an incremental volume into the baseline volume 360, uponrequest, or in conjunction with remote copy operations, or the like. Inone embodiment, compaction involves reusing space containing redundantentries in a manner that eliminates copy or move operations normallyassociated with compaction. In another embodiment, compaction involvestransferring the most recent entry for each block address to thebaseline volume, a backup device, a data vault, a redundant site, or thelike.

The archive module 330 conducts archiving operations to a backup deviceor system such as a remote data vault, or the like. The archive module330 may transmit compacted or non-compacted, incremental ornon-incremental, time-ordered or block-ordered images, or combinationsthereof, to the designated backup device or system. In one embodiment,the compacted images are generated by the compaction module 320.

The partition module 340 manages the incremental partitions 382 withinthe incremental log 370 and may manage the baseline partition 362. Inone embodiment, the partition module 340 automatically partitions theincremental log 370 in response to a snapshot operation. The partitionmodule 340 may also automatically assign a volume identifier to a newlyformed partition in order to facilitate convenient access to specificsnapshots.

The functionality of the compaction module 320, the archive module 330,and the partition module 340 may be managed and accessed by the storagemanagement module 222 as described in conjunction with FIG. 2.Specifically the storage management module 222 may provide an API toaccess the functionality of the aforementioned modules and to setpolicies 223 governing their operation such as temporal-based policies,status-based policies, and event-based policies.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart illustrating one embodiment of an incrementalstorage management method 400 of the present invention. The incrementalstorage management method 400 may be conducted in conjunction with, orindependent of, the incremental storage appliance 300, the storagecontroller 220 (specifically the storage management module 222), or thelike. The incremental storage management method 400 facilitatesconducting snapshot management, remote copy, data compaction, policymanagement, and other operations associated with data storage devicesand systems.

As depicted, the incremental storage management method 400 comprises acommand loop that includes a receive command step 405, a series of tests410–480, and a corresponding set of routines 415–485. The depictedseries of tests include a read block test 410, a write block test 420, acreate snapshot test 430, a delete snapshot test 440, a set policy test450, a read entry test 460, a compact volume test 470 and a shutdowntest 480. The commands executed by the incremental storage managementmethod 400 may be sent by an application, utility, or the like,executing on a host such as the host 210 depicted in FIG. 2. In responseto reception of a command at step 405, the depicted tests are conductedto ascertain the corresponding routine to be conducted by theincremental storage management method 400.

The corresponding set of routines include a retrieve block routine 415,an append entry routine 425, a partition log routine 435, a deletevolume routine 445, a set policy routine 455, a retrieve entry routine465, a compact volume routine 475, and an initiate shutdown routine 485.Although depicted as a command loop, other execution structures familiarto those of skill in the art, such as an index-driven interrupt table ora code object, may be employed to embody the incremental storagemanagement method 400.

The retrieve block routine 415 retrieves a data block corresponding to aspecified block address. Optionally, a specific volume may be specified.In one embodiment, the data block retrieved is the most recent entrywithin either the baseline partition or an incremental partition that isolder than the specified volume.

The append entry routine 425 appends a log entry such as a data blockcorresponding to a write operation to the incremental log. In oneembodiment, an index table containing the location of the most recentversion of each data block is updated to reflect the new entry withinthe incremental log.

The partition log routine 435 partitions the incremental log and mayautomatically associate a volume identifier with the newly formedpartition. The depicted partition log routine 435 may be conducted inresponse to reception of a ‘create snapshot’ command, or the like. Incertain embodiments, the value of the volume identifier (such as a LUN)that is associated with the newly formed partition is controlled bypolicies set by a client application, system utility, systemadministrator, or the like. For example, depending on the selectedpolicy, the volume identifier of the newly formed partition may be asystem defined constant, a sequential value, an explicitly specifiedvalue such as a parameter associated with the ‘create snapshot’ command,or the like.

The delete volume routine 445 disassociates a volume identifier with apartition. The delete volume routine 445 may also initiate compaction ofan incremental partition into the partition corresponding to thebaseline volume. In one embodiment, a storage management policy maydirect the delete volume routine 445 to place the released volumeidentifier into an available pool.

The set policy routine 455 assigns a specified storage management policyto an explicitly or implicitly specified resource. The specifiedresource is then managed according to the specified policy. In oneembodiment, the set policy routine essentially assigns specific valuesto various system options and control parameters in order to effect thespecified policy. Examples of system options directed by policyassignments include options for automatic compaction of volumes, optionsfor assigning volume identifiers, and options for data redundancy.

The retrieve entry routine 465 retrieves an entry from a partition orvolume in response to a read entry command or the like. In oneembodiment, entries are sequentially accessed in time order. Theretrieve entry routine is particularly useful when conducting recoveryor other snapshot management operations. For example, the retrieve entryroutine may be used to assemble an image of a volume corresponding to aspecified time by sequentially accessing the incremental log up to thespecified time.

The compact volume routine 475 compacts a specified volume. In oneembodiment, the volumes may be compacted in place using the methodillustrated in FIG. 6 or directed to a specific target such as thebaseline volume. Other compaction strategies and methods known to thoseof skill in the art may be deployed by the compact volume routine 475.

The initiate shutdown routine 485 is used to shutdown the incrementalstorage management method 400 and associated hardware. Upon completionof the shutdown routine 485, the incremental storage management method400 ends 490.

The collection of routines provided by the incremental storagemanagement method 400 facilitates managing incremental storage in amanner that facilitates automated snapshot management, remote copyoperations, policy management, and the like.

FIG. 5 is a text-based diagram depicting one example of an incrementalstorage interface 500 of the present invention. In one embodiment, thefunctions depicted in FIG. 5 correspond directly to the routines of theincremental storage management method 400 described in conjunction withFIG. 4. In one embodiment, the incremental storage interface 500 issupported by the storage management module 222.

The incremental storage interface 500 facilitates invoking correspondingroutines (via messaging, code marshaling, or the like) contained withinmodules of the incremental storage appliance 300, the storage controller220, or the like. The corresponding routines may be invoked by anoperating system, a utility, an application, or the like residing on ahost. Additionally, the incremental storage interface 500 may be invokedby modules resident or co-resident on a device or system such as thevarious modules depicted in FIGS. 1–4.

As depicted, the incremental storage interface 500 includes a set policyfunction 510, a read block function 520, a write block function 530, acreate snapshot function 540, a delete snapshot function 550, a readsnapshot entry function 560, and a compact volume function 570. In oneembodiment, the functions 510–570 correspond directly to the routines415–475 described in conjunction with FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart diagram illustrating one embodiment of anin-place compaction method 600 of the present invention. The in-placecompaction method 600 may be conducted in conjunction with, orindependent of the compaction module 320, the compact volume routine475, or the compact volume function 570. As depicted, the in-placecompaction method 600 includes an initialize data step 610, an inspectentry step 620, a redundanct entry test 630, a free entry step 640, andan additional entry test 650. The in-place compaction method 600facilitates compaction of a snapshot partition, or the like, withoutmoving entries within an incremental log.

The initialize data step 610 initializes data related to conductingin-place compaction. In one embodiment, the initialize data step 610initializes a free list used to record the entries that may be reused,and a block encountered table used to track which blocks have beenencountered within a snapshot partition.

The inspect entry step 620, inspects an entry within a snapshotpartition. In certain embodiments, the incremental log entries areinspected in reverse order (of occurrence) beginning with the mostrecent entry. In one embodiment, inspecting includes retrieving alogical block identifier associated with the entry.

The redundant entry test 630 ascertains whether an incremental log entryis redundant and therefore available for reuse. In one embodiment, theredundant entry test 630 includes a test and set operation that accessesa bit corresponding to the logical block identifier within a blockencountered table (not shown.) In the aforementioned embodiment, thetest operation ascertains whether the block was previously encounteredand the set operation indicates (for subsequent tests) that the blockhas been encountered.

If the redundant entry test 630 ascertains that the block has not beenencountered, the method loops to the inspect entry step 620. If theblock has been encountered (i.e. is overwritten and thereforeredundant), the method proceeds to the free entry step 640. The freeentry step 640 frees an incremental log entry for subsequent reuse. Inone embodiment, the free entry step 640 adds the entry to a free list.

Subsequent to completion of the free entry step 640, the in-placecompaction method 600 proceeds to the additional entry test 650. Theadditional entry test 650 ascertains whether additional entries remainwithin the partitioned being processed. If additional entries remain,the method loops to the inspect entry step 620. If no additional entriesremain, the method ends 660.

The present invention eases and improves storage management,particularly management of incremental images within a storage system.The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms withoutdeparting from its spirit or essential characteristics. The describedembodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrativeand not restrictive. The scope of the invention is, therefore, indicatedby the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description. Allchanges which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of theclaims are to be embraced within their scope.

1. An apparatus for incremental data storage, the apparatus comprising:a baseline partition containing a baseline image; an incremental logconfigured to store data, the incremental log comprising at least onesnapshot partition; a partition module configured to automaticallypartition the incremental log into an additional snapshot partition inresponse to a snapshot operation; and a storage management moduleconfigured to support storage management policies selected from thegroup consisting of temporal-based policies, status-based policies, andevent-based policies.
 2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the partitionmodule is further configured to assign a volume identifier to a newlyformed partition as directed by a storage management policy.
 3. Theapparatus of claim 1, further comprising a compaction module configuredto compact a snapshot partition.
 4. The apparatus of claim 3, whereinthe compaction module is further configured to conduct compaction asdirected by a storage management policy.
 5. The apparatus of claim 3,wherein the compaction module is further configured to conduct in-placecompaction.
 6. The apparatus of claim 3, wherein the compaction moduleis further configured to automatically compact a snapshot partition tothe baseline volume.
 7. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising acopy module configured to copy selected log entries to a tertiaryvolume.
 8. The apparatus of claim 1, further comprising a read moduleconfigured to retrieve the most recent data corresponding to a blockaddress.
 9. The apparatus of claim 8, wherein the read module is furtherconfigured to retrieve the most recent data corresponding to a specifiedsnapshot volume and block address.
 10. An interface for managingincremental data storage, the interface comprising: a write functionconfigured to append an entry to an incremental log; a read functionconfigured to retrieve a most recent log entry corresponding to a blockaddress; a snapshot function configured to automatically partition theincremental log into a first and a second volume; and a policyassignment function configured to assign a policy to an incremental log.11. The interface of claim 10, further comprising a read next entryfunction configured to retrieve a sequential entry from the incrementallog.
 12. The interface of claim 10, further comprising a compact volumefunction configured to compact a snapshot volume.
 13. The interface ofclaim 10, further comprising a delete volume function configured toreleases a snapshot volume.